Humor is how I make sincere connections quickly. I’ll make a stupid joke about the weather while I am standing in line – a personal observation to a complete stranger that could wind up in a genuine smile between us. We elicit emotions from each other like this all day, because we need to connect…

Humor is how I make sincere connections quickly. I’ll make a stupid joke about the weather while I am standing in line – a personal observation to a complete stranger that could wind up in a genuine smile between us.

We elicit emotions from each other like this all day, because we need to connect and we want to smile. We want it so bad, we’ll even tolerate advertising for it. Even though we know it’s sales manipulation; if it makes me laugh then it gave me something. I will be more likely to remember it and even pass it on.

So why are some folks scared of using humor when communicating to large groups? I suspect it often comes from not knowing the audience. If we don’t feel comfortable enough to consider humor, then we probably don’t know the audience well enough to speak at all.

Because, there are many facets of humor – everything from the horse-guffaw-coarseness to the sweet and gentle nod. Humor is a bridge not just because it connects us and makes us smile. It’s a bridge, because it can lift our conversations above currents that would normally prevent a sincere connection.

I mean, if it can make advertising taste better then is there really any doubt it can do the same for any kind of communication?

Well, according to the header it’s drawing with graphite. But that’s just how we start sometimes. There is just something about the way a pencil feels on paper – nostalgia, I guess. But in the video below we show the other way we draw on the computer. I think this is it for 2D on…

Well, according to the header it’s drawing with graphite. But that’s just how we start sometimes. There is just something about the way a pencil feels on paper – nostalgia, I guess. But in the video below we show the other way we draw on the computer. I think this is it for 2D on the computer. It’s either vector or pixels. (I believe 3D is usually created in polygons and is really more like sculpting than drawing.) Drawing in pixels is most like conventional drawing and painting. It’s great for texture, but it cannot resize infinitely like vector.
We finish the drawing in Photoshop using a Wacom Intuos. Really, this video is less about drawing an more about finding a style.

Everyday people ask us how we create illustrations. No they don’t. No one ever asks. But below is a video of us in Adobe Illustrator using a mouse to draw with the vector pen tool. It sort of does the same thing that a french curve used to do in the olden days, but this…

Everyday people ask us how we create illustrations. No they don’t. No one ever asks. But below is a video of us in Adobe Illustrator using a mouse to draw with the vector pen tool. It sort of does the same thing that a french curve used to do in the olden days, but this is all mathematically based points and lines. That means it can be scaled to any size, which is why it is used for typefaces, logos and most graphics. Vector is superb for crisp lines and shapes.

Collaboration makes creating better. It finds flaws and lets the best ideas rise to the top. But collaboration must stem from a genuine need. It cannot be forced. Many folks buying creative know this and give creators the trust required to get outstanding results. These clients leave final decisions to those doing the work, letting…

Collaboration makes creating better. It finds flaws and lets the best ideas rise to the top. But collaboration must stem from a genuine need. It cannot be forced.

Many folks buying creative know this and give creators the trust required to get outstanding results. These clients leave final decisions to those doing the work, letting the full weight of responsibility fall on the shoulders of those they hired. It’s what we do with the musicians, photographers and coders we hire, and it’s what we suggest to those who hire us: “Sit back and enjoy the ride.”.

But there are plenty of folks buying creative who mistake dictating changes for collaboration.

It’s usually out of good intentions, but this kind of heavy hand is a death grip for a project. The project will still get done, just not very well, because it isn’t given the room it needs to grow into the best results. Usually, the client doesn’t realize they are doing this and are just trying to help. But even small changes dictated without trusting the creator to make the final decision causes reverberations that diminish quality, eat up time and worse of all take away the vision from the creator. It’s like hiring a driver in a city you have never visited to take you to a location and then telling the driver where to turn. Everyone ends up lost, and the driver gets blamed.

Rightly so. It is the driver’s (creator) responsibility to listen to the passenger (client), so the passenger will end up at the location they need to be on time. But the passenger must trust the driver to do this. If the passenger continues to call out directions, it is the driver’s responsibility to politely insist they sit back and enjoy the ride. If the passenger cannot trust the driver, then it is the driver’s responsibility to stop and let the passenger out at the bus stop.